


seek to quench the fire of love with words

by radiowrittenheart



Category: Star vs. The Forces Of Evil
Genre: Drabble Collection, Multi, Tumblr Prompt, Various themes, in progress/will update whenever
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-20
Updated: 2017-11-09
Packaged: 2018-10-08 03:47:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 26
Words: 14,417
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10377237
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/radiowrittenheart/pseuds/radiowrittenheart
Summary: svtfoe tumblr prompt requests.(request here: reas-of-sunshine.tumblr.com/ask)





	1. {starco} things you said when no one was around

**Author's Note:**

> the title is a fucking shakespeare quote because i'm a little shit who has a love/hate relationship with that man's writing
> 
> AN YW AY i reblogged a thing on tumblr a while ago and got flooded with prompts; this is a few of many that were requested. i may eventually finish the requests/throw in some of my own ideas here.
> 
> here ya go, lovelies.
> 
> ~ ~ ~
> 
> first chapter: post-starcrushed. sort of.

“Are you okay?”

Well, that was a dumb question. Star clutched his hand, and squeezed tight, holding it with whatever strength she had left before lifting up Marco’s hand to her face, letting him touch the heart on her cheek. Perhaps in some sort of means to remind herself he was actually here...

“I don’t know,” she said, her voice wavering.

“Hey,” Marco whispered. “Star, c’mon, don’t cry—” He cried when she cried. It was silly and dumb and incredibly sensitive of him, but he didn’t really care. And after what they had been through, they both had every reason to cry.

Star’s crying was ugly; full of sniffling and wailing and messy tears that made her baby blue eyes seem red. She was loud and expressive, burying her face in Marco’s ash-covered hoodie, as he quietly cried with her, both of them shaking with every breath. They were intertwined in a mess of a hug by now, ignoring whatever chaos was going on outside the pathetic tent they had pitched for temporary shelter.

“Don’t scare me like that again,” Marco whispered. “Don’t leave me, Star. Not again,” He practically begged, burying his face into her mess of hair, soft and gold and almost twinkling from all the magic residue.

“I — I want you to listen to me next time,” Star mumbled. “I told you not to come after me,”

Marco heaved out a breathless, rueful laugh. “Just try to chase me away,” he said.

Star groaned, shaking her head against him. “I… I’m actually glad you came after me, Marco,” she sighed. “This isn’t gonna be weird, is it?”

She needed him more than ever now. After everything she had just learned of, what just happened to her home, her family all in panic— she could hear her great-aunt Etheria outside the tent, screeching about battle plans, while her mother yelled back about staying calm. The Johansen clan were on their way was the last news Star had heard before she covered her ears to block out everything. It was just too much, all at once, and now?

Now Star has her best friend, the boy she cared about so, so much in her arms, here to protect her. In fact, Marco even gently took Star’s hands away, holding them tight.

“Things were always weird for us, Star,” Marco said, with a hint of lightheartedness in his voice. “I’m a human boy from Earth, you’re a magical princess from another dimension… kinda hard to top that,”

Star managed a smile, shoving away her tears. “Y-yeah, you’re right,” she coughed out.

Despite what she had said before fleeing. The way she looked at him, the things she said—

“Now what?” Marco sighed, slowly freeing himself of their embrace to look out the tent.

Butterfly Castle was no more. It was nothing but ashes and smoke; the remnants of fire and magic crinkling in the air, Mewnian citizens running for cover while the royal family was left with nothing but the clothes on their backs and a few important royal belongings.

“I don’t know,” Star sighed, almost hopelessly.

Marco frowned. “Good thing you got your Safe Kid to keep you in check,” he said.

Star nodded, refusing to look at him. “It’s late,” she said. “Let’s get some rest before everything gets completely crazy,” Because she knew the family history. She knew it could get far worse than this. One last sniffle escaped Star before she collapsed on her side, curling up on the ground. “We… we can talk about stuff in the morning, okay?”

How he had left his home, his family, his girlfriend for her.

Why?

That was the question plaguing Star’s mind.

“Okay,” Marco echoed, laying down on the opposite side of the tent.

They fell asleep to the sounds of a royal family becoming ruined.


	2. {starco} things you said when i was crying

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> second chapter: the fluff we deserve

“W-why are you crying?!” Marco spluttered out. “What’s wrong?”

Star laughed, and practically tackled him— Marco nearly let himself fall over had he not caught his girlfriend in time, holding her around the waist and letting her cling onto him, peppering kisses all over his face. Not the reaction he expected, but not exactly unpleasant either.

He still didn’t get why she was crying, especially when she planted one of her signature Star Butterfly kisses on him; sloppy, wild, full of laughing and smiles.

“Nothing’s wrong, you dork,” Star giggled, sniffling and smiling from ear to ear.

“But you’re crying,” Marco pressed.

Sure, it seemed like a happy cry, but it was still puzzling as to why she was tearing up in the first place. He gently put Star back on her feet, hearing her tiny wings buzz with excitement as she couldn’t tear her eyes away from him.

A nervous laugh escaped Marco, and he bashfully looked away. “Did I say something?” he asked.

“Yes,” Star piped up. “Yes, you did,”

She draped her arms around his neck, before sniffling one last time, shaking her head to regain composure. She knew how ridiculous she was being, how silly she looked … but she had waited far too long for this.

“I love you too, Marco Diaz,” she whispered. “But I think you already knew that,”

Marco blushed. Suddenly, he felt like crying too. Instead, he just smiled and kissed Star on the nose. “Yeah,” he whispered; deciding to echo his statement, the one that had caused her excitement in the first place. “I love you.”


	3. {moonriver} things you said after it was over

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> third chapter: moon & river's first meeting

“Have you ever felt like you’re on top of the world?” he asked.

Moon let her hair whip in the wind, and she breathed deep, taking in the scene down below at the bottom of the mountain. What was his name again? He was one of the five Johansen brothers — ah, yes, River. The one who had accidentally (and literally) swept her off her feet amidst a fight, and then saved her from getting knifed by a savage monster.

The scene down below was war.

A great, gruesome war where monsters and all of Mewni had gone against each other, practically brother versus brother.

“What becomes of us now?” River spoke up. Suddenly, he broke out into a series of stammers, beginning to bow — and clearly failing at doing so. “Um, y-your Highness. It was a pleasure to fight beside you, by the way.”

“Please,” Moon sighed. “There is no need for that,”

She stuck out her hand, an offer to help him up, but he eagerly shook her hand instead, smiling up at her.

“They always did say you were modest,” he said, almost with booming laughter. “And it seems you’ve proven that, Princess,”

He noticed his family, whooping with joy and some even throwing one another in the air as a means of celebration now that all the monsters were gone. And then, on the other side of the battlefield, her family was stoic and serious as ever. How had this radiant, bold and brave beauty he just met come from such a bland family?

“Thank you, River Johansen,” Moon declared, smiling down at him humbly. “I will forever be in debt to you and your kin.”

He blushed. She had never seen a man blush like that before, his entire face red as the fiery sun that began to set over the horizon. It wasn’t until now did she notice he was still holding onto her hand— and once she became aware, his firm, strong grip let go…

…her hand felt light, almost empty.

She didn’t even know she was blushing until she felt the diamonds on her cheeks heat up and tingle with a glow.

“You know,” River spoke up. “Typically, after a battle victory, us Johansens have a grand party and banquet. The win was not entirely ours, so it’s only fair you and your family accompany us.”

Moon gave a small smile, giving a mock curtsy in her elegant armor. “Let me find a proper ballgown at first, good sir,” she laughed.

A war had just been won, and while a small grey cloud loomed over the young princess’s head, her heart already began to swell with a strange sort of warmth.

 


	4. {moonriver} things you said when you were scared

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> fourth chapter: post-starcrushed, the other side of the spectrum.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> me when i write pre-canon/young moonriver: sweet, pure fluff let them be happy  
> me when i write current canon moonriver: MAKE THEM SUFFER
> 
> why am i like this

Moon the Undaunted, scared. What a laugh. What could Mewni’s dauntless queen ever be afraid of? How ironic it was that Mewni’s bravest queen had many fears— more than she could count on both hands. Most of them were petty fears, of mice and heights and things the common citizen didn’t quite care for either. But she always believed there was a very prominent difference between instinctive fear and genuine fright.

And now, she was scared.

So scared she felt as if she was about to fall over and faint.

“Moon? Darling?”

River’s deep, rolling voice broke the queen’s train of thought, and she jumped, the ink on her quill splattering all over the parchment she was writing on.

“Hello, River,” Moon said calmly, refusing to look up, beginning to gently blot the ink out— to erase her mistake. As if all mistakes were this easy to get rid of. Her husband began to approach, and in a moment of panic, the queen folded the paper in half, trying to feign a smile (and not realizing she was miserably failing).

The king sat at the only other seat at the cramped desk, his wife’s study dimly lit. “It’s late,”

“I’m aware,” Moon hummed.

“You should be in bed, dear,” River sighed.

Moon scoffed. “I’ve gone to royal court, settled disputes, passed laws and kept this kingdom standing on only two hours of sleep and a pint of Pixtopian coffee before,” she retorted.

“Yes, and you slept for fourteen hours the next day,” her husband argued.

“The trials and perils of becoming queen,” she sighed.

River knit his brow, taking his wife’s hand, intertwining their fingers before resting his head on her shoulder. Moon smiled contentedly, lifting up their intertwined hands and kissing the back of her husband’s hand. He leaned in, quickly kissing her cheek and snatching the paper in one swift move.

Moon yelped, nearly tackling her husband. “Oh, I should have known—”

“ _The last will and testament of Moonlight Andromeda Butterfly_ ,” River gasped, reading the first line. “Moon, why are you writing this?”

A lump formed in the queen’s throat, and she pulled away from her husband, yanking the paper from his hands, smoothing it out on the desk. The candlelight seemed soft before, and now, it was almost haunting against her pale, thin frame.

“I’m frightened, River,” she said, rushing the words out in a single breath. “What with everything going on, our past coming back … who knows how long I have?”

Her head hung low, and she trembled, hiding her face in her hands, almost shamefully. Then suddenly, she felt a familiar, strong and warm embrace. River let out a heavy breath, kissing the top of the diamond on his wife’s cheek. It was then when Moon began to cry. Not only did being queen come with trials and perils, as she had said, but also pain.

So much unexpected, frightful pain.


	5. {starco} things you said while i cried in your arms

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> fifth chapter: a different spin on post-starcrushed, much later

“Class of 2018,” Principal Skeeves sniffled in the middle of his speech. “You have done many extraordinary things here at Echo Creek Academy. You’ve given me headaches, an ulcer or three, a select few of you nearly blew up the school—” Someone in the crowd cleared their throat rather loudly. “But I have to say, you are the most … interesting class to graduate from this fine school.”

There was a pause, and he just shrugged.

“Good luck in the real world,”

Everyone began to cheer, just as the band began to play a grand fanfare. The new graduates threw their caps in the air, carelessly letting the red, white and gold all fall to the ground— and the rambunctious chaos of celebration began.

Except for one.

In the first row, twenty-third seat, Marco Diaz found himself sitting there.

Alone.

In shock.

Not too long ago, he thought he would see a familiar smiling face, hyperactive princess only a few seats down from him. But she wasn’t. It had been three years and it still hurt. Well, not as much as the sudden flash directly in front of him—

“What did I miss?”

He’d know that chipper tone of voice anywhere. And he never thought he’d hear it again; dreams told him it would be ruined, his sense of hope had died and told him she would be gone forever—

Marco didn’t even respond. But it was this that caused him to jump up; “Star!”

She still gave amazing hugs. Her laugh was the same. But she was taller than he had last seen her, and her hair was in some botched pixie cut, her wand a darker color, worn with age, and she was here and hugging him back and laughing.

“Hey, Marco,” she said softly. She scanned her gaze over him, and her eyes widened. “Wow. I missed a lot.”

“Who cares?!” Marco blurted out, taking his grad cap to place on her head. “You’re back!” He didn’t even realize he was crying, until Star’s hands — which used to be soft, but now were calloused — were cradling his face, wiping away streaks of tears. “I…. I missed you.”

He wouldn’t go on a tangent about how could she leave, why didn’t she come back earlier and what the hell had happened, that was all for later.

Marco Diaz could have celebrated graduating high school, but instead, he rejoiced in the fact his best friend was finally back.

“I missed you too, Marco,” Star sighed, giving him that smile.

That smile that had haunted him for the past three years, sweeping back into his life with rainbows on fire and glowing pink hearts and unpredictability around every corner. The moment couldn’t have been anymore bittersweet.


	6. {moonriver} things you said with my lips on your neck / after we fell in love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> sixth chapter: how it all began

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the requester sent two prompts at once so i was lazy and combined them

“Marry me,”

She whispered the words lazily, in between slumber and waking up, her arms draped across him, her face buried into his neck. River spluttered out a few stammers, Moon laughed against him, and hugged tight.

“I mean it,” she urged. “Become my king, River. I love you,”

It was sudden. It was abrupt. And it was so, so simple. Then again, it was what he had fallen in love with. The sun peeked through the sheer blinds— they had fallen asleep during a long, overdue heart-to-heart after her coronation. The princess he had met on the battlefield was now being branded as the bravest queen Mewni had ever known.

River lazily ran a hand through Moon’s long periwinkle locks, parts of it still confined in that ridiculous hairdo from last night. “I can’t,” he muttered. “You’re… you, Moon, I still don’t know what you even see in me, how I got so lucky—”

“I don’t want you to talk like that,” Moon spoke, glancing up at him. “I see so much in you. It is I who is the lucky one,” She wasn’t one to initiate affection, especially so bold, so River was definitely surprised when she sat up and kissed his lips with just a bit of force behind it. “Do you have any idea how boring my life would be without you in it?”

Their foreheads were pressed together, two shades of blue reflecting back at each other.

“I don’t want to ever lose that,” Moon whispered. “I don’t want to lose you, your spark, your energy. I can’t imagine a life without you now, not after everything we’ve been through.”

“I — I love you too,” River assured, his entire face aglow with a blush.

“So?” Moon let out a soft murmur of surprise when River dove in, strong arms wrapped around her tiny waist as he laid her down on her back, hovering over her, the two of them falling into a mess of kisses. What would her family say? She was so young, she hadn’t even had time to properly rule, she was hopelessly in love with a man some would call ‘barbaric’... and all Moon knew was that it was unconventional, marked as wrong, but felt so right.

Her whole life, she had expected to be arranged with some stuffy suitor from some far off land, when she had found the love of her life so close by.

And she was in love. Truly. It was beautiful.

“I need an answer,” she laughed softly, pulling away gently to cup River’s face, stroking his cheek with her thumb. “River Johansen, will you do me the honor of being my husband?”

“Of course,” River replied, his voice low and husky, the words coming out in a single breath. “I’m yours, Moon. For now until the last star refuses to shine,”


	7. {starco} things you said that made me feel like shit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> seventh chapter: yet another strange spin on post-starcrushed

The second the words left her lips, Star wanted to crumple up and cry. But now, what she had said literally echoed off of the empty walls of the castle; “Just go, Marco! This isn’t your place, y-you shouldn’t be here!”

“My place?” Marco scoffed, taking a step back. “What’s ‘my place’, Star?”

She didn’t have an answer for him. Instead, Star kept her head hung low — vibrating with every heavy breath she took. Her hands formed into fists, the castle suddenly seemed so cold, lonely as ever, even though he was back, finally—

“I crossed so many dimensions to get back, I- I nearly got myself killed!” His hoodie was shredded, nothing but scraps to cover some wounds he had here and there. He had traded his high tops for combat boots, and he had a scar on the top and bottom of his eye. What had happened to him? “I went to Mewni and you were gone! Everyone was! I’ve been looking for you this whole time and all you can tell me is to leave?!”

“What else do you want me to say, Marco?!” Star hollered back.

It had been too long, that’s all they knew. Time went different, regarding the dimension. He definitely looked older, and as for Star? She didn’t want to come to terms with how old she was now.

She was still a scared little girl, stuck in this foreign body.

“Well, ‘I missed you’ would be a good start!” Marco argued. “And, y’know, ‘thanks for risking your life to come after me’ would be another!” His brown eyes were brimmed with hot tears and he scowled, eyeing her up and down. “Who died and made you queen, huh?!”

A simple Earth phrase… one Star had never heard before, and suddenly, she choked up, going rigid, staring down Marco with her blue eyes turned to ice. “My mother did, actually,” she muttered.

Marco’s face suddenly fell, along with the tears he had been failing to hold back.

He suddenly recognized her. She didn’t seem so different anymore. Sure, she had a bad hairdo and too much makeup and a crown, but she was still Star. Still his best friend. Forever the girl he would cross dimensions for.

“So I want you to leave before I lose anyone else important to me,” Star declared, stepping forward, lunging in to take Marco’s scissors and shove them in his hands. “Go. And don’t come back,”

Marco looked at his reflection in the scissors, opening them and glancing at Star’s bitter, stiffened lip, furrowed brow and faded hearts on her cheeks. What had happened to her? What happened to them? What had time done to them, the magic they had, the friendship that once was?

Star practically shoved him. “Go back to Echo Creek, Marco Diaz,” she declared. “That is an order from Queen Butterfly.”

“Queen—?” Marco mumbled in disbelief.

None of it seemed real. He was expecting to wake up in a cold sweat any minute now… and all he found was his best friend glaring at him with a look that could probably kill. Was she even really his best friend anymore?

“Star,”

“What?”

She didn’t look at him, but she clutched her wand, head hung low.

Marco had plenty of things to say, too many questions buzzing in his mind. Instead, he did something that surprised Star so immensely, she nearly fell over. She never, ever thought she would see her best friend bow to her, perfectly and poised.

“As you wish, Your Majesty,”

There was the magical twinkle, the zip of a portal open and closed.

Now, rather than yelling, on the walls of her new domain, Star heard the echoes of her own cries haunting herself and all of her loneliness.


	8. {moonriver} things you said before you kissed me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> eighth chapter: my kink is happily married couples acting like dorks

They were here strictly on a diplomacy meeting. And it was supposed to be a classy, lovely little get-together of two kingdoms uniting… but their parade was rained on. Quite literally, most of the guests had been looking forward to the union parade that was scheduled after the dinner. But alas. The Duke and Duchess of the Waterfolk Kingdom were nowhere to be seen, apparently they didn’t even want to show themselves in this dreadful weather.

Regardless, a carriage sat in between the shore and forest, waiting.

“We came all this way, we should at least let them know we arrived,” Moon huffed, whipping open her frilly blue parasol as she got out of the carriage.

“Now, darling—” River tried to protest but his wife was already marching around, clearly frazzled at the fact no one was in sight. He knew that things like punctuality and promises meant quite a lot to her. “Moon! Get back in the carriage, it’s awful out!”

Moon looked back at her husband, and sighed. “Oh, please, it’s only a bit of mud and rain,” she said. “You used to roll around in this muck when we were younger!”

He frowned. He hated it when she was right. And he would certainly love to go galavanting around in this weather but he was king now, and kings had a certain reputation to uphold… River hoisted his jacket up as a makeshift umbrella before he marched out after his wife, also looking around for the diplomats that should have greeted them.

“Unbelievable,” Moon grumbled. “Nessarose always does this too,”

She was standing in the middle of the beach now, hoisting up her skirt as best as she could to keep the mud from ruining it. River stood beside her, and sighed.

“Well, I suppose we should go home,” he said.

“Yes,” Moon sighed. “I suppose so,” However, just as she began to turn around, her parasol was yanked from her grasp and she yelped. “River! Oh, come now, give it back—”

He took off running across the muddy beach, bellowing with laughter. Moon stood there, pouting for a moment and letting the rain soak her. She folded her arms, raised an eyebrow, that usually got him running back to her with a ‘yes, dear’ … but not this time. River looked back at his wife, hogging the umbrella all to himself and smiling at her smugly.

“We’re getting too old for this,” she spoke up, just loud enough for him to hear her.

Normally, she would have just paraded herself back to the carriage, but the rain was persistent and heavy. Besides, she was enough of a mess— she had some dignity, rather than to go home as a complete mess. Moon tried to shuffle through the mud, before her husband broke off into a sprint, causing the queen to groan.

“ _River_!” she hollered, hiking up her skirt and beginning to run after him. “River, so help me, when I get my hands on you—!”

She frowned, letting her thin fluorescent blue wings pop out from her dress, in an attempt to take to the gloomy sky. However, once Moon got only a few feet above the ground, the rain overpowered her wings and she plummeted back down onto the muddy beach… but not before knocking over her husband in the process. They tumbled together in the mess, groaning and laughing.

“This is all your fault,” Moon muttered as she found herself lying on top of the king.

“I know, I know,” River laughed.

“I’m serious,” she insisted, trying to hoist herself up— only for her silken gloves to get ruined by the mud, her hair had become undone, flowing everywhere all at once, and mud was smeared on her face.

River snorted, holding up the ruined parasol over them as some kind of ironic joke. “You look stunning,” he said.

“As do you, my love,” Moon huffed, grimacing as her husband reached up to try and smear the muck off her face. “Oh, please, stop, trying to be cute is what got us in this mes—” She was cut off when she was suddenly pulled close, the rain soaking them both as River closed the space between them with a kiss.

She couldn’t help but laugh out loud when they pulled away and some of her hot pink lipstick was smeared onto his own lips.

“You’re insufferable—” she blurted out.

“Oy, your Highnesses! Are ya alright?”

Both the king and queen were alerted by the call from the ocean, where the Duke and Duchess of the Waterfolk Kingdom looked at them, puzzled. Moon blushed, trying to smooth back her mud stained hair and gave a nervous smile.

“Duke Scotty, Duchess Nessarose,” she said, awkwardly getting to her feet and managing a clumsy curtsy. “We…. we’re just fine.”


	9. {starco} "Wait, don’t pull away — I want to hug you for awhile longer."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tbh i realized i write too many tumblr prompts for this show so here's all of 'em, not just the one prompt series
> 
> so yeah

“W-wait,” Star whispered, holding on as tight as she could. “Marco? Don’t let go,”

Marco paused, then kept their embrace. “Hey,” he said softly, weaving his fingers through the soft, silken blonde waves. “What’s wrong?”

Star swallowed hard against him, physically shaking. “I just… I wanna keep you here for a little while longer,” she murmured. “You’re a good hugger. L-let’s keep hugging, okay?” It’s not like she gave him much of a choice; she held on with all of her strength.

“Okay,” Marco sighed.

Everything had seemed so perfect. It was fixed now, wasn’t it? Enemies had been defeated, kingdoms were reclaimed and Earth … well, it finally felt like home again.

Star was home.

She was with Marco, and they were cool, so to speak. They hadn’t gotten a summer together, but Marco promised next year. Star promised to stay that long, because nothing could tear her away from him again.

But her subconscious hadn’t entirely agreed.

The bedside alarm clock read _12:58 am_. They were both weary, and confused. Marco wanting to know what was wrong with his best friend, and Star… all she wanted was for everything to make sense again, even if it was ‘fixed’. The only thing that hadn’t been fixed amongst their battles and quests was her poor, aching heart.

“You’re crying,” Marco said simply, gently pulling away in the hug. “Star, something’s really wrong.”

“I’m fine,” Star lied, sniffling despite it all.

“No, you’re not,” Marco argued. “What happened?”

Star couldn’t tell him. The jealousy-induced, fear-ridden dreams. Her dreams were too vivid, too real; flashbacks more than anything else.

“Nightmare,” she mumbled. “Sorry. I’m being dumb,”

“You’re not dumb,” Marco assured. “You wanna talk about it?”

She almost said yes. She almost dove right back in for another classic Diaz hug; Marco really was the best hugger. They were soft, warm hugs that let Star know she was safe and there wasn’t any danger around. She missed those hugs… and she missed him, even if he was always there.

Star shook her head. “No,” she said, her voice soft as a scared child. “I… I guess it was just after the war, y’know?”

“Yeah,” Marco said, his tone also faraway.

She had him. Jackie had moved during the school year— while they fought Mewni’s greatest enemy. Star had been there for Marco during that trying time, and that had only made things weirder…

...everything was so weird for them, wasn’t it?

How cruel and ironic it was; when Star could have him, was when she wasn’t so sure of when she wanted him. She just needed his kindness, his heart, his everything—

“You okay now?” Marco spoke up, noticing Star’s tears disappear as fast as they came.

“Yeah,” Star said, her voice hoarse.

Marco paused, then gently slid off the edge of her bed. “Holler if you need me,”

Star nodded, scooting back on her bed to sit against the headboard, watching as he left her bedroom. And she was so sure she was done with crying herself to sleep over him.


	10. {moonriver} "Guess who?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> damn reagan back at it again with the dorky royal married couple

“Guess who?”

“How in the world are you able to reach up this high, River?” was the first thing Moon said, before secretly rolling her eyes at her husband’s silly little prank.

River huffed, removing his hands from his wife’s eyes. “I’m not that short,” he grumbled in defense. “I only needed one stepstool this time,”

Whatever protests or comebacks Moon had were cut off, by a lovely bouquet full of daisies and lilies held out to her. A soft _“oh”_ escaped her, and she smiled, taking the flowers and kissing her husband’s cheek.

“Oh, River,” Moon murmured, giving a bashful smile. “You shouldn’t have,”

She blushed when her husband took one of the lilies, twirling it in between his fingers before gently weaving it between her hair and ‘casual’ tiara. He grinned, leaning in to press their foreheads together, just about to meet halfway in a kiss when Moon suddenly halted, almost yanking away.

“River,” she said, her voice low as she gently gripped the bouquet. “What day is it?”

“Tuesday,” River replied, giving a nonchalant shrug. “So?”

Moon shook her head. “No, no, the date,” She turned away him for a second, looking at the small calendar in the corner of her desk. _May 20th_. “Oh, sweet Mother of Mewni,” She looked back at her husband, almost crestfallen. “Well, now I feel terrible,”

River knit his brow, growing concerned as his wife looked sadly at the flowers.

“What’s wrong, dear?” he said, lifting her face up with a finger.

“You know what’s wrong,” Moon huffed. “Don’t try to make me feel better,”

She practically pouted as she looked down at the bouquet in her hands, and yet, River’s confusion remained. He looked at her, pondering how every emotion could look so beautiful on her— and then it hit him too.

“Oh,” he said softly. “Isn’t today our anniversary?”

The sincere perplexment in his voice caused Moon to perk up, and she paused for a moment before bursting into a fit of giggles.

“But— the flowers—” She tried to protest, but was far too amused by her husband’s entire face going red.

“You seemed stressed!” he spluttered out. “H-how did we forget that?”

“I haven’t the faintest idea,” she mused. “How long have we been married again? It couldn’t be that long, five or six years?”

Taking note of his wife’s sly smirk, River took her hand into his, intertwining their fingers.

“More like seventeen,” he said, with a low chuckle as he kissed the back of her hand.

“We’re getting old,” Moon huffed.

But her words couldn’t have been that true, after all. Everytime the two of them had a sweet, intimate moment like this, she couldn’t help but fall in love all over again — with the brave boy she had met on the battlefield. Those sky blue eyes of River’s never lost their spark, his bold spirit refusing to fade.

“Oh, really now?” River laughed. “If I was old, could I do this?” On the final word, he lifted his wife out of her seat, a sudden shriek of surprise coming from Moon.

“River!” she laughed, burying her face into his shoulder.

He was certainly surprised by the sudden kiss she placed on his lips; brief yet powerful. The surprise almost caused him to stumble off of his step stool, but he kept his balance and held his queen with all of his strength.

“What say you, my love?” River chuckled. “Shall we celebrate?”

“Hmm, I don’t know,” Moon said, rolling her eyes. “I have a lot of paperwork,” For a moment, her husband almost bought it, before she broke out into a grin, throwing her arms around his neck. “But it can wait.”


	11. {starco} “i love you” — [broken, as you clutch the sleeve of my jacket & beg me not to leave]

“Wait! M-Marco, wait!”

She looked like she had been ripped right from the storybook pages; silver dress flowing, swaying in her heels, running down the castle’s perfect ivory and marble stairs…

…and there he stood, in the grand golden doorway; raggedy hoodie, ripped jeans and one of his shoes was untied.

Marco paused, hand resting on the doorknob. “What?” he asked, his voice raspy and worn out. He was a fool. He had come all this way for nothing. There was no real danger. Not anymore.

He was just a kid who tried to be a hero.

He could never be like her.

Star Butterfly; brave, bold and beautiful. So, so beautiful, even when she was angry with him, when she grabbed him by the hood and forced him to look at each other… and even when she cried, she was still breathtaking. Heavy tears trembled at the brim of her unbelievably blue eyes.

“I just got you back,” she pleaded. “You can’t leave,”

“Well, it seems like you don’t need me anymore,” Marco muttered. “You defeated Toffee, Mewni is back to normal— as normal as it can get, I guess— a-and,” He paused, prying her hands off his shoulders. “You’ve got other royal business going on.”

Star trembled. “I still need my bestie,” she pleaded.

It killed Marco to see her this way. But he had been through so much, and his mind was racing. He had no idea of how to react to this…

“I love you,” Star blurted out. “I said it! There! I don’t just ‘like’ you, Marco Diaz! Do you know how lonely I’ve been, how boring it’s been?! I thought I wasn’t gonna make it without you— a-and being away just made this whole crush business even worse, a-and I’m so, so sorry about what happened with Jackie, I heard—”

“I know,” Marco said softly, with a solemn nod. “We… worked things out. And she’s okay now. Just getting used to fins instead of feet. Curses aren’t what they used to be.”

Star gave a shaky, bittersweet smile at his attempt of a joke. “I want you around,” she pleaded. “Please. We can make it work,” Her voice suddenly grew low, as footsteps were heard approaching.

“Starlight? Darling, what is it?”

Marco froze at the unfamiliar voice and found himself under the watchful gaze of a stranger; tall, dark and strong.

“Flynnigan, this is—”

“A friend,” Marco assured, stepping away. He gave a curt nod, then looked at Star, who was physically trembling. He mouthed the words ‘i’m sorry’ and bowed, as best as he could. “Like I said… you’ve got important royal business. No time for a Safe Kid, right?”

He turned on his heel and left, twirling his scissors around his finger, his heart gaining a new crack with every step he took.


	12. {moonriver} “i love you” — [when i am dead]

The glittering ashes of her soul had been spread on the border of their homelands; some had drifted back to the Butterfly kingdom, others towards the towers of the Johansen clan. River stood there, alone, where he had met the love of his life so long ago.

Moon had been fifteen, leading an entire army on a wild warnicorn mustang; River was a bumbling fool, at sixteen, with nothing but his fists and adrenaline.

And now, the land was barren.

No one would know that this ground was sacred— where war had been wrought, an unlikely alliance was formed and a legendary love bloomed.

But there was nothing left now. Moon was gone. What was River here for?

Closure had come shortly after her funeral. He had come to terms with the fact his wife was gone for good. Perhaps it was longing that plagued him; seeing things that reminded him of her, how cold his bed was in the morning… and he still didn’t know what to do with her things. Star, bless her heart, had inherited most of the belongings but disposed of them. She couldn’t seem to heal her heart as fast as she liked.

River had stolen one thing, though.

Moon’s ring. Passed on from River’s beloved, late mother to the woman who had won his heart in a matter of minutes.

The perfect pearl against the silver glimmered, despite the gloomy day.

It was then River knew what he had to do. With his bare hands, he began to claw at the cold, hard ground, chunks of soil flying. He carelessly threw the ring amongst the dirt, burying it back into the dirt. Then, as the final touch, he took his royal scepter — with the soft blue star and moon emblem — and drove it into place, letting it stand tall in the field.

“Moon,” he huffed out, trembling, trying not to sob. “I…”

There was so much he would have said if she was still here. But she wasn’t. Anything now wouldn’t matter, would it?

“I love you, Moon,” He always would. He had said that to her many times; from that one night they had snuck out of a party to go hiking in the Forest of Certain Death, when she proposed to him, at their best times and especially at their worst. “I always will.”

Present tense.

While she was physically gone, she would spirtually live on in his heart.


	13. {starco} “i love you” — [not said to me]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THIS ONE ACTUALLY HURT ME  
> AND I WROTE IT

It was nothing fancy. Of course. Neither of them would have wanted it that way. Friends and family, a few outsourced people “just because” that was how she was. Marco liked that about her. Well, more than ‘liked’ but regardless.

It was a perfect summer day too; not too humid, a soft breeze, sun out without a cloud in the sky.

And as expected, this was on the beach. Waves crashed softly, as if they knew not to disturb this lovely moment, birds sang to accompany it.

The Diazes were set up on one side, her family on the other. Both extensive families, whispering excitedly, others tearing up and laughing softly, from disbelief and joy.

Her vows had been short, sweet and simple; just like the woman who delivered them. Marco had stuttered and stumbled his way through his, occasionally glancing back at his group of best men… and one best woman.

She had fought through a brutal war, run a kingdom and seen things that would make many other people lose their sanity. So why was smiling and giving a thumbs up the hardest thing Star Butterfly had ever done in her life? Why did it hurt so much?

Marco smiled so wide, his face could have burst apart.

“I … I love you, Jacqueline Thomas.”

The crowd burst into cheers and clapping, the officiator couldn’t even announce the couple married before the bride and groom met for a kiss that involved Jackie dipped down towards the sand, Marco holding her as tight as he could.

Star didn’t even realize she was crying until the tear crossed the heart on her cheek. She gasped, brushing it away and sniffling. Beside her, Ferguson nudged her, his brow knit.

“You cry at weddings too, huh?” he said, offering a pristine white handkerchief.

“…something like that,” Star muttered.


	14. {moonriver} "That was barely even a kiss!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> young moonriver is my lifeblood and it’s keeping me alive until starco becomes canon send help

“Move it— I can’t see!” Lump.

“Well, maybe you could see something if you weren’t so short!” Spirit.

“Shut up, they’re gonna see us!” Grunt.

“They’re just… sitting there,” Dusty.

The entire clan of Johansen children, minus one, were huddling in between the bushes, swapping a pair of binoculars and a makeshift telescope or two as they observed the scene at the bottom of the hill.

“Hey! Baby bro! Smack some PDA on the princess— ow! Red, get off me!”

Down below, River tried not to groan at all of his siblings whisper-yelling from the bushes behind him. He had been blessed with the courtship of Mewni’s highest-ranking princess and they were going to ruin it for him.

He glanced at Moon sitting beside him, who was growing visibly uncomfortable. From what, he wasn’t sure. Was it him? His family? Was she with him only out of pity?

A million thoughts raced through his head—

—and then all halted when Moon grabbed him by the collar, shoving her lips against his in a sudden kiss. Well, it was more of their lips smashing together, but either way, it was very un-Princess-like … and he almost liked it. But it was torn apart too soon, perhaps to either of their likings, but they both looked back, practically glaring at the group of Johansens who had been stalking them.

“Are you all satisfied now?” Moon hollered, rolling her eyes as her consort’s siblings all began to whoop and cheer, galavanting away in joy. She sighed, glancing back at River… only to notice he was laughing dumbly, and his entire face was red. “River?”

“Th-that was nice,” he practically cooed.

Moon giggled, the diamonds on her cheeks glowing with a blush. “Well, I would hope it was,” she mumbled bashfully. “Just don’t get used to it. You know how us Butterflys are about ‘PDA’… but—” She took his hand, intertwining their fingers. “This will do.”

River lifted her hand, kissing the back of it, just like when they had first met.

Moon smiled sweetly, resting her head on his shoulder.

She nestled herself a little closer and they went back to peacefully watching the sun set over their two adjacent kingdoms.


	15. {jantom} "Stop telling me you're okay."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow guess who joined the party

“Please don’t be like that,” Tom pleaded.

Janna barely replied. She just looked up at him, eyebrows knit and giving a tiny pout. “Uh, like what?” she asked. She looked clearly perplexed when he gently reached out, cupping her face, his thumb stroking her cheek. “Thomas, if you want something—”

“Forgiveness,” he blurted out. “Gods, Jan, forgiveness! For last week! How are you acting like that didn’t happen?!”

He remembered it so vividly. He hadn’t slept, eaten or anything. She was so normal. He couldn’t bring himself to face her since then. He was promised himself—

“I… I got you new stuff,” Tom mumbled, snapping his fingers to produce a small gift bag; complete with pink bows. “The journal, potion set,” His frown somehow grew when Janna hesitantly took the bag, continuing to look confused at him.

They had gotten into an argument. Not their first by any means, but definitely the worst.

At least for him.

He had nearly burnt her bedroom down, he had yelled at her— not specifically at her, but while talking to her and that was just as bad— and unintentionally broke some of her things. Tom had left just in time before things truly went to hell.

How was she not mad?

“Thanks,” Janna said, with a shrug. “I already had new ones in the mail though. You didn’t have to,”

She was weird about gifts. Right.

Shit. Boyfriend of the Year Award was definitely not going to Tom Lucitor.

“We’re argued before, you know,” she pointed out. “And usually, the flowers are enough.”

Pink roses. Her favorite. His mind had been so clouded over the past week, he was neglecting to remember basic things he should have known.

“I’m sorry,” Tom sighed. “For everything,” How had he not scared her? Why wasn’t she terrified of him, yelling right back? “Do… do you want to break up with me now? I would totally understand, I — I mean girls have left me for that before—”

“Would you just shut up?” Janna groaned, putting her hands on her hips.

Tom paused, swallowing hard, ready to shuffle back a few steps.

“I feel terrible for the way I acted around you,” he muttered. “It’s not right, a-and I know that! And I’m trying… but yeah. N-not my best,”

He shoved his hands into the pockets of his ripped jeans, his three eyes all glowing and focused on his girlfriend. Who was finally starting to look pissed. That was sort of relief. He knew Janna was smart— she wouldn’t stay if she knew what was good for her.

“I don’t care,”

Oh, hell.

Janna met his gaze, shaking her head. “You think I don’t know you have issues, Tom?” she said. “I get it. Trust me, I do. And, y’know, I didn’t like your little temper tantrum, but you’re getting better. You didn’t take it out on me.”

“I could have,” Tom said.

“You wouldn’t,” Janna argued. “And— okay, this sounds wrong, but…” She knew girls who got into terrible situations. She liked to think she wouldn’t be that way. After all, Tom was genuinely good. He knew what he was doing.

And honestly, Janna didn’t feel rattled at all around him.

“Did you take your meds that day?” she sighed.

“I — I don’t remember,” Tom admitted bashfully.

“Well,” Janna pursed her lips and thought. “Have you gone to your meetings?”

Tom nodded. Then, he was surprised when Janna took his hand, held it tight and bestowed a somewhat relieved expression.

“Okay then,” she said, almost flippantly. “That’s all I needed to hear.”

“You’re not mad,” he practically deadpanned. “Or scared.”

Janna shook her head. “Nah,” she assured. “It’s just… I’ve been through way weirder stuff than my boyfriend’s issues. I can handle this— I can handle you,” She squeezed his hand a little, standing on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek. “We got this. Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” Tom said, holding on tight to Janna’s hand, despite his own was shaking. “I… I’m okay.”


	16. {moonriver} "Because no one cares about me!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello angst my old friend
> 
> p.s i headcanon the mewnian drinking age to be 15 so any boozing in this drabble is technically legal

She stumbled out of the tavern; heels in her hand, the other hand gripping a lamp-post and tears streaming down her porcelain cheeks. She wasn’t exactly drunk — it took more than a few shots of whiskey to take her down — but her thinking was clearly impaired. Is that why she was crying? Wouldn’t most sensible girls be happy?

Then again, “perfect Princess” Moon Butterfly wasn’t exactly a sensible girl sometimes.

What would her mother think? Her mother wouldn’t care. She was a ‘fun’ Queen, after all. Better yet, what would her kingdom think? Moon could remember as so eloquently putting it as “the kingdom won’t burn down in one night” before she downed her first drink.

After that, all she knew was River.

River Johansen, the young prince she had been courting for only a few months, and his eyes as blue as his name, his warmth and strength and kind heart. They had been drinking and dancing. They were laughing. They were happy— and he had went and ruined everything, everything that seemed so serene and perfect, but of course, River was obliviously sweet, probably assuming he did something right.

She didn’t even hear him stumble out of the tavern, but noticed him by her side in the cool autumn night.

“What’s wrong?” River spoke up. “Moon, are you crying?”

“Why did you have to say that?” she practically hissed, her voice quaking with tears.

She held onto the lamp-post, draping herself to the side, and ignoring River approaching her.

“Say what?” he muttered, taking a moment to recollect what had just happened between them. He had never seen her so distraught, especially when it was his fault. “Wha— I love yo—”

“Don’t say it!”

Her tone of voice was shrill, almost daring to slip into native Mewnian chitters.

“What?!” River practically bellowed. “I don’t understand, why not?!”

“B-because no one loves me!” Moon snapped, tears streaming down her cheeks. “They care about what I do, how I act, but they don’t care about who I am or even know the real me!” Her knees went weak, wobbling, and she fell onto the crumbling curb. “I-if a whole kingdom can’t care about me, my own parents just want to pass the crown onto me and be done with me, how can I believe that you love me?”

She sniffled, convulsing with every breath. Was this a terrible time for her anxieties and insecurities to get the best of her? Yes, yes, it was.

River placed a hand on Moon’s shoulder— either to comfort her or to keep her still.

“Is that why you’re upset?” he mumbled.

She weakly nodded, dropping her shoes carelessly into the puddle at the curb; never mind the price or the fancy jewels on them. “Sometimes… I wish I wasn’t a princess,” she muttered.

Sighing and stroking her hair, River let Moon place her head on his shoulder.

“I’m sorry if I upset you,” he spoke up. His words came out a little slow, whether it be from weariness or the drinks. “I… I meant it, though. You—” He chose his words carefully, he wasn’t too far off either. “You don’t have to say it back.”

Moon didn’t say anything. Instead, she just wrapped her arms around his burly body; his muscles tensed, his heartbeats lulling her back to normality. His soft breathing calmed her down, and for a moment, Moon forgot why she was ever nervous about anything, at all.

Lively music from the tavern seemed far away, and they were so, so close—

They glanced at each other before leaning in for a chaste kiss, full of give and take, a bit of swaying back and forth before they pulled apart, blushing and flustered from … everything.

“Uh, h-how is your brother doing?” she mumbled. “Did they get that dart out of his arm?”

River knit his eyebrow, then nodded. “Oh, yes, Grunt’s fine,” he said. He paused, then cleared his throat, refocusing his gaze on hers. “Are you? Um, you know, alright?”

Moon hung her head and shrugged.

“River?”

“Yes?”

“Please walk me home,” she sighed, staggering to her feet and outstretching her hand.

“O-oh, of course,” River blurted out.

He shrugged off his jacket, draping it over Moon’s shoulders and letting her lean up against his strong frame as they headed down the cobblestone streets back towards her castle. They were times she really considered that she loved him too, but that would have to be pondered over less drinks and a clearer head. But they were so young— he had just turned eighteen, that was the whole reason they had gone to a tavern of all places, and she was still seventeen, still a young girl.

Did either of them know what love was?

“You know what,” Moon whispered. “I… I care about you, River. If that’s enough,” She pressed her lips to his cheek and giggled, flushing when his strong grip squeezed around her tiny waist.

“More than enough,” River assured.

And in their drunken stumbles, neither of them bothered to notice a fleet of shooting stars in the dark sky up above.


	17. {starco} “No, don’t cry, you know I hate it when you cry!”

“Just face it, Marco, your family hates me!” Star argued, facedown in a pillow and refusing to look up at him. “They talk bad about me in Mexican—”

“Spanish,” Marco impulsively corrected.

“Whatever!” Star wailed. “They think I’m crazy and weird— I know some of what they’re saying, y’know! A-and the way they look at me makes me feel… dumb. Like I don’t belong,” She grabbed the pillow she was laying on top of, hugging it close, facing away from Marco. “You never should have brought me here.”

Marco frowned, crawling onto the bed and gently placing a hand on her shoulder. “Hey, don’t talk like that,” he said softly. “You do belong. You belong with me and I brought you here because,” He paused, taking a moment to take it in that yes, this was real now— “Because you’re a Diaz now. At least, here on Earth you are. I got to know your family, I thought it was only fair you met mine.”

“I have,” Star protested. “Your mom’s family was so cool, and they all liked me. Your parents like me. The Diazes don’t so we should just leave. Besides, I can’t keep up with all of these weird Earth heritages!”

She heaved out a breath, looking at him and frowning.

“I — I’m sorry, Marco, I don’t mean _you’re_ weird, I just…” She swallowed hard, chin quivering.

“Hey, don’t cry,” Marco pleaded. “I cry when you cry. You should know that by now,” He took her hand, lifting it and kissing just above her brand-new ring.

Star sniffled, biting her bottom lip. “I guess I know how you feel on Mewni,” she muttered.

“Heh. Kinda,” he admitted. “But it’s okay, I get what you’re saying. My family is pretty overwhelming,”

“Your aunt Rosa _did_ throw a weird candlestick at me when I mentioned magic,” Star grumbled.

Marco sighed, “Yeah. She’s one of the worse ones, I’m sorry. I just… I thought bringing you here for our honeymoon would be nice. Guess I was wrong. We haven’t gotten much romance in, huh?”

That actually got a bit of a giggle from Star, and she rolled her eyes.

“I don’t need romance, you dork,” she said softly. “I need you. Your family is cramping our style, though.”

Their style— as in impromptu adventures, silly simplistic things they could laugh over, and just enjoying togetherness. They both smiled and laughed at her true words while Marco leaned in to place a kiss on Star’s cheek.

“I don’t need romance either,” he assured. “Buuut,” He practically trilled as he leaned in, hands cupping Star’s face, kissing her nose. “I still wanna take you somewhere tonight. Dinner and dancing?”

“I won’t be able to read the menu or understand the music,” Star retorted.

Marco grinned. “That’s okay,” he assured. “It’ll be fun anyway.”

“Maaaaarco!” a shrill voice hollered, a sudden banging on the bedroom door. “Abuelita says you better not be playing kissing games with the Stargirl in the house!”

“Too bad, Marisol!” Marco shouted back, his tone dripping with sarcasm. “I totally am, and Abuelita can’t stop me!”

“Kissing— oh,” Star mumbled. “Kissing games. Yeah,” That was a word for it. She rolled her eyes and shook her head. “Why do they call me ‘Stargirl’ anyway?”

Marco sighed. “Star Butterfly is… different to them,” he mumbled.

This actually got a small laugh out of Star. “What, they don’t think my real name is Star?” she asked.

“Kinda,” Marco sighed, getting up and gently pulling Star up with him. “C’mon. Let’s get out of here, before the rest of my cousins get up here and start being weird too,” He wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pressing a kiss to her temple. “Follow me, Mrs. Star Diaz,”

“Lead the way, King Marco Butterfly,” Star teased.

Marco paused before opening the door, and he smiled down at his new wife. Wife. His best friend for six years, love of his life for four years and now wife. He had married his best friend and he still couldn’t believe it.

“We are _so weird_ ,” he said in a breathy laugh.

“Yeah, we are,” Star agreed. “But… that’s a good thing.”


	18. {jantom} "I'm pregnant."

“What— the— _fuck_ ,” Janna said, in between heavy breaths. She glanced to the charred couch in front of her, and frowned heavily. “Look, I’m not exactly happy about this either, but you didn’t have to react like that.” In her hand, she gripped the test so firmly she could have snapped it in half.

Tom sat on the couch while it shriveled up around him in flames, and folded his arms. “What do you wanna do with it?” he asked.

Janna stood there for a moment, towering over her boyfriend before throwing the test down on their spiked coffee table. “I don’t know!” she blurted out. “That’s why I’m asking you!”

“I know some spells that can get rid of it just as easily as you got it,” Tom said nonchalantly.

The reaction he got from his girlfriend was not one he expected, to say the least. Janna bit her lip, and she screwed her eyes shut, hands forming into shaking fists. However, Tom didn’t flinch. He couldn’t react to this, he couldn’t let himself get vulnerable and attached to something like this—

“W-we have time to think about it,” Janna argued, swallowing hard when her voice wavered.

“Actually, no, we don’t,” Tom retorted. “Demon pregnancies can last as short as three months. You could blow up like a balloon tomorrow morning.”

Too lost in shock to register anything, Janna barely reacted when Tom got up, leaving their couch to burn. His eyes softened before he reached out to her, gently placing a warm hand on her abdomen. A moment passed before a soft glow came forth, and he shrugged apathetically.

“My mistake,” he said. “She’s got a human heart.”

“It’s a girl?” Janna mumbled.

A daughter. For them... They were crazier ideas in this world.

“You’ve got time to think, right?” Tom muttered. “Decide what you want,”

He was about to turn on his heel and split, if not for Janna’s hand bolting out to grab his arm. In a matter of seconds, Janna’s demeanor went from panicked to absolutely livid.

“It took two to tango, Thomas,” she hissed. “You are gonna help me decide what we’re doing with it—”

“I can’t!” Tom bellowed, yanking Janna’s hand away while he blew up into flames—again. “Don’t make me choose between you a-and that thing!” He pointed at her, his eyes all aglow, only before faltering. “Oh, Gods, Jan, I… I’m sorry, I didn’t mean—”

Janna didn’t seem fazed. “Tell me what you want,” she grumbled. “Because having kids isn’t the worst thing in the world.”

“But losing you is!” Tom blurted out.

Instantly, Janna’s eyebrows knit together and she scoffed. “Losing me? What time are you living in? Women dying in childbirth is, like, super unlikely—” She trailed off, and her hands fell weakly as her sides, then she swallowed hard, like it took all of her strength to do so. “But… uh, I guess most chicks aren’t carrying the next Princess of Hell, huh? That, uh, that could mess me up?”

Tom’s expression was suddenly weary beyond belief. “More than mess you up,” he admitted. “But she is part human, so,” He shrugged. “I… I’m scared. Even if it all turns out okay. Can I raise a kid?”

“He asked the felon and witch,” Janna mused, a bittersweet chuckle slipping past her lips.

“Yeah,” Tom whispered. “Look, we have— what, nine months?”

“Well, more like a few weeks if we want to, y’know, eliminate it,” she said, her voice low, as if their potential bundle of joy could hear them.

With a shaking hand, Tom gently cupped Janna’s face, his talon-like finger wiping away a single tear.

“Okay,” he sighed. “Let’s figure something out.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lmao you thought this was gonna be sweet and sappy


	19. {starco} "This is, without a doubt, the stupidest plan you've ever had. Of course I'm in."

“You’ve been hanging around Janna too much,” Marco grunted as he continued to scale the chain-link fence. “Seriously, Star, why are we even breaking into this place anyway?”

Star had already made it to the other side, and she impatiently rocked back and forth on her heels. “It’s not breaking in if it’s abandoned,” she pointed out. “Besides, it’s a castle! Look!” Her wand fashioned as a flashlight in the dark of the night, it’s light illuminating the creepy Victorian.

Marco sighed while swinging one leg over the top of the fence. “It’s not a castle—” He began to argue, but his girlfriend was already eagerly skipping towards the front porch.

“Star!” he hissed from his perch on the top of the fence. “Star, get back here!”

Only Star Butterfly would want to visit Echo Creek’s creepiest abandoned house, on Halloween night no less.

“Crap,” Marco groaned as he launched himself off the top, tumbling into the dead leaves. He rolled for a moment before bolting to his feet, running after Star before she got herself stabbed by some maniac or possessed by a weirdo ghost—

—not that he was scared. He just had heightened awareness. Yeah, that was it.

“Star!” Marco whispered when he stepped carefully into the creaking Victorian.

“Marco!” Star hollered back, her peppy voice echoing off the wooden walls.

“Star!” he groaned, smacking his head against a column in the dusty foyer. “Let’s go!”

“No, you’re supposed to yell ‘polo’! I saw some kids playing that game once!” She was at the top of the stairs, jumping up to reach a string hanging from the ceiling— a light, perhaps? “Anyway, isn’t this place super cool?! Turns out it’s not a castle, but it looks like one!”

She was already bounding up another set of stairs, and Marco sighed in defeat, accepting his fate. If they got eaten by some creature that was hiding in one of the closets, so be it. He had done crazier things for this girl…

…and as Marco made his way up the stairs, he neglected to notice a small flame coming from another one of the rooms in the old house.

“Did Diaz just crash our date night?” Tom hissed.

“On our anniversary too,” Janna pouted.

For a moment, the demon stood there, pondering, before his left hand popped off. “Care to give those two idiots a scare?” he asked.

Janna eyeballed the hand that waved to her, and even gave an awkward bow.

“I love you,” she chuckled, kissing her boyfriend’s cheek.


	20. {moonriver} "Is there a reason you're naked in my bed?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> in which reagan tries to avoid writing intimate scenes

The early morning sun ignorantly bled through the curtains, disregarding anyone who wished to sleep in. River groaned and winced, attempting to roll over yet he was stopped by the most lovely obstacle. Lithe arms wrapped tightly around his torso, head resting just below his chin and a soft whine was the plea to _oh-no, please, whatever you do, don’t move._   
  
Moon was stuck in some sort of state between asleep and awake, and perhaps it was for silly of him to think but River was always slightly frightened he’d accidentally crush her when they were tangled like this.  
  
Well… not exactly like this. This was new.  
  
Not that he minded. Not at all. From now on, this was how they would start every morning for their rest of their lives. For a moment, it almost felt like this was still a dream. Their turbulent yet beautiful love finally blossoming into some sort of fearless forever…  
  
River was pleasantly surprised when Moon didn’t even bother with a ‘good morning’; her lips were far too occupied lazily kissing the gentle place between his collarbone and neck.  
  
“I thought you weren’t one for affection,” he teased.  
  
“Well,” Moon sighed. “I suppose that now I have a husband, I may have had a tiny change of heart.”  
  
“Oh, have you now,” It was more of an observation than a question, and he noticed her shy, embarrassed smile, the way her diamonds glowed with a blush. “And this husband of yours, do I know him?”  
  
A soft giggle escaped Moon and she rolled her eyes a little, her gaze never leaving his. Blue, endless seas of blue that each one of them could get lost in. Adjusting her position, so she could practically sit in his lap, Moon’s smile was sweet and practically sentimental.  
  
“Hmm, he’s very strong,” she whispered. “And very brave. Golden heart. Short, blonde … did I mention handsome?”  
  
“He sounds the real deal,” River mused, pulling his new wife closer until they was barely room to breathe.  
  
“And he’s the love of my life,” Moon finished, as she cupped his face and brought them together for a kiss.  
  
Firm hands gripped her tiny waist, thin fingers made a grab for tousled blonde locks; they were so new to this intimacy, yet it felt so similar. Years of struggles, sweetness and overall love finally turned into one glorious union...  
  
“Have I ever mentioned how much I love you?” River whispered as they broke apart, foreheads pressed against each other.  
  
A weary, yet coy smile made it’s way across Moon’s expression. “You might have,” she murmured. “But I’d probably remember it if you showed me,”  
  
They were just about to meet in another kiss… until someone had the gall to bang on the bedroom door.  
  
“The kingdom better be on fire, Manfred!” Moon spoke up, her voice suddenly thick with sharp regality. “I asked for one day off! _One day_!” She huffed, impatiently tapping her fingers on River’s chest— waiting for an answer that never came. Thankfully.  
  
A sigh escaped her and she let her long periwinkle hair fall over one shoulder.  
  
“Now,” she sighed. “Where were we?”


	21. {starco} "Have I entered an alternate universe or did you just crack a smile for me?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *shows up the badboy&princess AU* I M LATE

“You didn’t have to get into another fight,” Star muttered.

Just as Marco saw her pick up the wand, he winced. “Don’t,” he said, his voice heavy and low, practically a growl as he glared at her magical trinket.

Star rolled her eyes. “Re-lax,” she assured. “I was just moving it,” She settled down on the couch, patting the seat next to her. “C’mon, Diaz. You can’t let something like that go.” She watched the way he clutched his arm, the blood seeping through his torn-up denim jacket.

“I’ll live, though,” he argued.

For a moment, she could have argued. She could have thrown her first-aid kit with unicorn bandaids and glittery gauze into the trash…

...but she didn’t.

“Fine,” she said. “I’ll be here if you need me,”

And one of the laser puppies, Barko Diaz, hopped up and cuddled into Star’s lap.

She sat there. Like nothing was wrong. Like she had given up. And in a way, it almost hurt Marco. He had grown fond of the Princess’s fussy attitude, her bossing him around (sometimes) and overall, her golden heart underneath that.

She was good.

She wasn’t like him.

“I guess,” Marco began to mumble. “I mean— I kinda don’t want another infection,” It’d become another scar and he had plenty of those.

Star raised an eyebrow, intrigued, and she simply watched him until he plopped down on the couch next to her. The puppy got up and hopped away, almost as if he was saying, ‘I’ll give you two some alone time’— maybe his little bark was just that. Who knew.

“That’s what I thought,” Star said, with the tiniest smirk.

Ugh. She loved being right. He hated that.

“Why did you get into a fight with Oskar Greason anyway?” she asked while gently rolling up Marco’s tattered sleeve. “He seems harmless. Just lives in his car and plays his piano guitar thingy.”

Marco huffed, rolling his eyes. “I don’t wanna talk about it,” he muttered.

This wasn’t what she was used to. If Marco truly didn’t want to talk about it, he’d talk trash for a while, scowl like he was so tough (he wasn’t, he really wasn’t, and Star saw right through it) and just swear next time he saw that person, he’d do it again— but he never did.

He was like her.

He was good. Sort of.

“Well,” Star sighed as she began to dab rubbing alcohol into the wound, slowing down a bit when she noticed Marco’s wincing. “I… I kinda saw some of it. And Janna video-taped the whole thing,” Marco huffed out something Star couldn’t hear and she frowned. “Um, you were saying something like ‘don’t talk about her like that’. I— I guess what I’m saying is—”

Marco stole a gaze and almost laughed when he noticed her face was as pink as the hearts on her cheeks.

“Not why you were fighting,” she mumbled, cleaning up some grass stains that were still on his arm. “But who you were fighting for?”

He stiffened up, and she thought it was because of the stinging of the medicine and ointment.

“Jackie?” Star asked, not realizing her voice was thick with almost-tears. Not quite there but they certainly had potential. “I know you like her. You gave her a ride on your motorcycle a-and that’s cool, I just thought motorcycle rides were our thing.”

“It wasn’t Jackie,” Marco muttered, his free hand forming into a fist.

Star paused, before slapping a bright pink bandaid on Marco’s cut. “Uh, w-what was it? Uh, who—”

“You,” Marco spat. “That idiot was saying stuff about how he wanted to know if you were as freaky, uh, i-in… it doesn’t matter. He called you freaky. With your magic and wings and crap,” He eyed his bandage and snorted out a laugh—

—and smiled when he looked at her.

But she wasn’t smiling back. She was crying. But little did Marco know, it was a different cry than before. Then again, this dumb Princess who just fell into his life, she cried at everything.

“What’s wrong with you?” he asked, his smile immediately turning into his typical scowl.

“You fought for me?” Star said, her words coming out almost breathlessly.

Marco paused. “Yeah,” he mumbled. “Only I can call you a freak. I never mean it. Y-you’re great, Star. I know I act like a jerk to you most of the time, but,” He flexed his arm a little to keep his wound from throbbing. “I… I like having you around. Before, the other exchange students,” He huffed. “They thought they could fix me. You didn’t.”

Star shrugged. “I can see you,” she assured.

“Is that some kind of weird Mewman talk again?” he asked.

“No,” she assured, awkwardly fidgeting on the couch. “I… I’ve grown to like you too, Marco. Because I know you’re more than just— just getting into fights and being a jerk. You like puppies, and cooking and you get straight A’s, even though you tell everyone else otherwise! You’re a good guy!”

Marco bit his lip, to suppress a smile, and Star laughed a little, poking him in the side.

“Smile,” she urged. “C’mon, Diaz. For me?”

“For you?” Marco laughed, instantly breaking out into a grin. “Maybe. But only for you, Princess.”


	22. {moonriver} "Wanna dance?"

A tavern.

The _“perfect Princess”_ Moon Butterfly was in a tavern. Pitchers of whiskey and bourbon galore, rowdy music coming from every angle, and not a single table was empty. In her kingdom, they had somewhat dignified clubs or bars, where there was some order…

...the Johansen kingdom, however, did not seem to hold the same values.

“I’m sorry about this,” River muttered. “I told Jonas to empty the place out for just us tonight,”

The manager he was referring to seemed to be amongst the drunken idiots, singing a shanty in the corner. Moon paused, wringing her hands one over the other before she laid eyes on him.

“It’s fine,” she assured. “It’s just— different.”

There wasn’t much to do, though. Dinner in a place like this, during ‘Happy Hour’, did not seem like a good idea. And drinking was usually something she had only known at royal balls and family events— Uncle Royland would bring enough whiskey and bourbon to drown the entire Butterfly family. And then there was… well, there was dancing.

Dancing. It could work in here. Perhaps.

“Do you know Rowan Woods’ Symphony Number Nine?” Moon asked the nearby band players.

The drummer laughed, nearly keeling over. “Princess, l-look, we play shanties and jigs,” he said. “I’m not a real musician, you know that, right? S-sorry, just,” He kept howling with laughter, he was probably also intoxicated.

Moon hesitated, stepping back— goodness, a child was in the band. A young boy holding a lute, unfazed by the tavern’s wild atmosphere.

The nerve of this place.

She sighed, heading back to the bar and taking a seat next to River. Those gathered around rickety tables, sitting in creaky stools and knocking back drink after drink seemed to blatantly disregard them. Not that Moon exactly minded. It was actually some sort of strange comfort to know that here, no one bothered to notice she was a Princess.

Well, most of them.

“I am so sorry,” River mumbled, suddenly by her side. “Let’s get you out of here,”

“No, no, it’s not your fault,” Moon assured, flushing a little when one of his arms wrapped around her waist, leading her away from the more rowdy crowds. “We can stay,”

River frowned, knitting his brow together. “I know this isn’t exactly your atmosphere, Moon—”

“That’s not to say I can’t give it a chance,” she argued, stepping out of the cautious grip that held her in place. “I’ve seen far worse than a rowdy tavern, River,”

“I know that,” he said. “But I just— I want to treat you right,”

Moon smiled, placing a hand on his shoulder gently. “You’ve done that,” she whispered. “But tonight? I… I think I want to do something that’s not right,”

Her own words were surprising her, but instead, she kept ‘rolling with it’ as some might say.

“Two shots of your best brewed whiskey,” she asked the bartender. “...Put it on tab of Etheria Butterfly,”

She couldn’t help but smirk. _Let’s see what you think of my ‘barbaric relationship’ now, aunt Etheria_ , was the Princess’s thought as the two shot glasses were slid down the bar. Moon lifted hers up, and gave River his. They stood there, awkwardly smiling before clinking glasses and sipping down what some might call liquid courage.

Moon placed her glass down on the bar, and then turned to face River with a soft smile.

“Shall we dance?” she asked.

Surprised by the sudden boldness, River stammered for a moment before giving a shrug of defeat.

“I— I suppose so,” he said. “On one condition, I don’t care if you’re taller, I’m leading,”

Moon smiled, then gave a curtsy. “Prince Johansen,” she said.

He gave a bow, stifling laughter at how silly they were being. “Princess Butterfly,”


	23. {starco} “I know I’ve kissed you like, ten times, but just like another ten, please.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is literally just... nonsense lmao

“Star,  _no,_ ” he declared

“Marco,  _yes_ ,” she whined.

He sighed against her, helpless. She was laying on top of him (—which wasn’t the problem, not one bit—) and when she wasn’t rambling sweetness, talking a mile a minute, her lips were occupied elsewhere. Mostly against his own lips (also not a problem), but this was not the time.

 _That_  was the problem.

“Star, no,” Marco urged. “You gotta get up. Queen duties,”

“Queen duties don’t need to be on a Sunday morning, do they?” Star pouted.

Marco shrugged— well, tried to but it was pretty hard with a tiny, tough temptress on top of him. “According to your trusty assistant, yes, they do,” he mumbled, the last few of his words getting lost in another kiss, and another, and another…

He softly sighed, falling back against the purple, plush royal mattress and his hands darted up— at first to push away, to be persistent and say nope, they couldn’t, not this time. Instead, they were lost in seemingly endless waves of blonde, travelling down to trace soft pink hearts, finger the strap of Star’s nightgown.

“Even if my trusty assistant is my fiancé?” Star pouted when she briefly pulled away for air.

“Unfortunately, yeah,” Marco said, his lips smirking against hers before he gently placed one last soft kiss on her lips. “Your kingdom awaits you, Queen Butterfly,”

Star pulled away slightly, crinkling her nose. “Ugh, I guess if I have to,” she sighed heavily, obviously being overdramatic on purpose. “On one condition,” She kept her arms wrapped tight around Marco’s neck, pulling him in and giggling. “Ten more minutes.”

“You’d be late for the tariff meeting—” Marco tried to argue. Like it was worth it.

“Wouldn’t be the first time, won’t be the last,” Star declared, almost sounding regal despite their…  _situation_.

Marco sighed, rolling his eyes, letting himself succumb to the sweetness. Yeah, it’d definitely be longer than ten minutes at this rate.


	24. {jantom} "You make me feel so damn gushy!"

She had tolerated the cliche dinner-and-movie first date; at least he had the common sense to get fast food and go see an independent thriller. She was cool with meeting his parents; they absolutely loved her anyway, so that was a major plus. She was fine with celebrating anniversaries; he always did give the best gifts.

Janna had slowly become soft because of Tom, and she knew the only bad part of it was that there was nothing she could do to stop it.

Not that she exactly wanted to.

But originally, she never thought herself being so comfortable with romance. She never thought she’d actually blush when a guy did nice things for her— she thought she could tackle romance and turn it around, like pickpocketing or some other form of trickery.

Yet Janna had met her match in the form of kind gestures, sweet nothings, strong embraces…

…overall, an experience she’d never understand.

Never mind that, though, what she didn’t understand was why Tom summoned her. No, he didn’t ask her. He quite literally summoned her; left the little bell and everything, with a note that said simply ‘ring me @ 9pm. dress nice’. He was always so formal, and she wasn’t. Thankfully, one of the many perks of dating a prince meant all the good gifts.

And Janna had to admit, because every girl had a little bit of princess in her, she felt pretty fabulous in her shimmering, dark pink gown while stepping out of the demon carriage.

Her own form of fabulous, anyway.

“Thanks, Gringotts,” she said, high-fiving the tiny devil who had flown her down.

“Mistress Janna, Master Tom is waiting for you in the ballroom,” one of the many heavy-set demon butlers of Lucitor Castle said.

Janna nodded, giving the butler a two-finger salute before heading down the dark, damp halls. Was that music she heard? There was no way Tom had thrown this together just because. What was today? It definitely wasn’t Valentine’s Day, their anniversary or any sort of royal event that she had to attend on account of being the King’s girlfriend…

He was up to something. And while Janna loved Tom, she hated not being in on a scheme.

She’d definitely chew him out about that later.

Right now, though, she found herself entering an empty ballroom. Well, mostly empty. A band off to the side played some sort of waltz. Aside from that, it was just Janna. She frowned, hands on her hips, about to holler—

—until a pair of strong arms wrapped around her from behind.

“Hey, beautiful,”

“Thomas,”

“I hate when you call me that,”

“At least we’re even.”

Janna ended her rebuttal with a foxy grin, turning around in the soft, strong embrace and no, she wasn’t blushing, yes, it was Tom’s heat radiating onto her.

“Get down here,” she teased, grabbing him by the shoulders so she could pull him down and kiss him.

She briefly remembered the days she towered over him, but many things had changed. Themselves, most of all. A hot-headed demon and a witchy scoundrel— a match made in hypothetical heaven, and literal hell. They had grown up, learned from each other and fallen in love.

One of those things was not like the other.

Tom grinned in the kiss, and pulled away sooner than Janna would have liked. “You look amazing,” he said. “Where did you get that dress?”

“Oh, just some guy. You wouldn’t know him,” Janna smirked. “Anyway, what did you drag me down here for?”

“Can’t a guy woo his girl every once in a while?” Tom asked, starting to lead them into a waltz.

Janna was thankful she wore high-tops instead of high heels, but even so, she still made for a terrible dancer. She was always slightly off the beat and stepped on his toes (sometimes purposefully but Tom could never really tell), so usually, she just resorted to laying her head on his chest and letting him lead.

But it seemed this time he wanted her to be involved.

The music picked up a little, a more light-hearted, happier tune as opposed to the somber, sweet melody that was playing when they first arrived in the room.

Tom gently eased Janna into a twirl, and she faltered just slightly, she picked it up right away. They were a sight to see; black and pink twirling around, fangs and smirks, and sure, there was no magic, no flames to dance on in mid-air…

…they were in love.

That was enough.

Janna didn’t realize Tom had let go of her hand until she found herself practically skidding to a stop on the marble tiles, her dress fluttering back down, her hair loose from the bun she had thrown it into.

“What was that for?” she mumbled, turning on her heel to face Tom.

And a million emotions ran through her when she noticed he was no longer standing up, looming over her with his strength and kindness. He was down on one knee, smiling with all of his teeth, and holding a ring box.

She knew what this was, but her mind didn’t process it until Tom asked that one fateful question.

“Janna Ordonia, would you marry me?”

The violins kept playing. Tom’s crimson eyes glimmered in the dim candlelight. Janna didn’t even realize she was shaking or crying until Tom was back on his feet, at her side, gently reaching out.

“Jan? Babe?” he whispered. “Hey, are you—”

“I hate you,” Janna coughed out in some paradoxical laughing-crying mixture.

“W-what? Why?” Tom spluttered out. “Was it the music? The ring? Did I do something wrong?” He was surprised when he noticed how happy Janna actually was, sniffling and wiping away her tears, long streaks of mascara on her cheeks.

Janna shook her head, shakily smiling at him. “You didn’t do anything wrong,” she assured. “I… I—  _yes,_  Thomas, of course. I’ll marry you.”

Instantly, a smile sprung up on Tom’s face— one so wide, it was sure to split his face in half. He smiled, fumbling with getting the ring out of the black velvet box, and slipping it on Janna’s finger. The black gold and red ruby shined for only a moment before shimmering bright enough to nearly blind them.

“I love you,” Tom whispered, leaning in and kissing Janna on the forehead.

Through her stupid sniffling and uncontrollable tears, Janna smiled and looked up. “Yeah,” she murmured. “I love you too.”


	25. {jackanna} "I’m bad at texting first, so I always end up hoping you will."

Janna liked to consider herself good at making the first move. She was very fond of just going for it, throwing caution to the wind because why the hell not.

(Jackie hated the first move. It was so awkward. Who did it? Was that okay? What if it got screwed up?)

The IM-Ster app was taunting her.

(That new texting app was dumb but also pretty tempting.)

Janna sighed, swiping it open and scrolling down to her Top #5 Friends list. She tapped number one.

(Jackie usually just used to watch cat videos and quick-baking clips. Nothing else, really.)

She sent something simple. Something she knew by heart— coming from her weird, haunted heart.

(A tiny little purple bird came up on screen, with an envelope. A message.)

 **Jan:**  <3 is my religion. i could die 4 that. i could die 4 u.

 **Jan:**  (not really tho.)

 **J-Lynn:** i am just a small girl in a big world trying to find someone to love.

 **J-Lynn:**  (pls don’t. I like you alive LOL.)

 **Jan:** m monroe??

 **J-Lynn:** she was ahead of her time

 **Jan:**  plus she was A+++ in looks department

 **J-Lynn:**  truth

 **J-Lynn:** nice open btw. Very forward.

 **J-Lynn:** was wondering when u would txt me

(She wasn’t waiting, no. But at the same time, maybe she was.)

She shouldn’t have waited so long.

 **Jan:**  my imagination is a monastery & i am it’s monk

 **Jan:** code for i couldn’t figure out what to say

 **J-Lynn:** god you’re so weird???

 **Jan:**  u kno u love me tho!!!!

Janna instantly regretted what she just typed.

(Jackie bit her lip and blushed, and was thankful no one was around to see it.)

It wasn’t supposed to come out like that.

(It sounded so nice but was it really love?)

 **J-Lynn:**  ur not wrong lmao

(Maybe it was.)

Maybe it wasn’t so bad, after all.

 **Jan:**  wyd

 **J-Lynn:** bored

 **Jan:**  stay put

 **J-Lynn:**????

 **Jan:** prepare urself 4 more weirdness >:)

 **J-Lynn:**  dork.

 **Jan:**  ik.

 **Jan:** btw

 **Jan:** my love is selfi

She sent it too soon. Shaky hands and a shitty phone were a really bad combination.

(She laughed.)

 **J-Lynn:** my <3 is selfish. i can’t breathe w/out u.

Janna nearly dropped her phone, but at the same time, the dumbest grin was making it’s way across her face. (Jackie was halfway across the neighborhood, feeling the same way, doing the same thing.)

 **Jan:** did you do some hw???

 **J-Lynn:** maybe… ;)


	26. {starco} cooking together

“So wait, wait, how long does the melty cheese take?” Star asked, looming over the stove.

Marco grinned, slightly pushing his girlfriend back. “The queso is gonna take about five minutes tops,” he said. “Since, y’know, we’re using Velveeta and not the good stuff. Had to cut corners.”

Star scoffed, “I’m sure it’s gonna be great either way.”

She had pieces of corn and spices all over her hands, a smidgen of flour on her nose, rosemary in her hair— she was an absolute disaster in the kitchen. Marco couldn’t help but smile, leaning in and placing a gentle kiss on Star’s nose.

“How are the homemade corn chips coming along?” he asked.

“Good!” Star beamed. “Sorta. I had some trouble with the cookie cutter but it all worked out.”

Marco paused, arching an eyebrow for only a moment before he decided to not question it. It was Star, after all. The kitchen was dimly lit, as to not alert any guards looming in the Castle hallways or anyone else around, but it was just enough.

“How long do you think everything is gonna take?” Star asked, literally bouncing up and down on her toes with excitement.

“Since we’re making homemade chips, a little longer than usual,” Marco said. “But not too much―”

He was cut off with a chaste kiss to his lips, surprising him for only a moment before he grinned.

“What was that for?” he whispered, leaning in to gently cup Star’s face in his hands, thumbs resting on her heart emblems. Which now glowed with warmth, lighting up the dim kitchen.

2:30am, making homemade nachos with his magical princess girlfriend.

Them being together, just having fun and being kids after all the chaos that had been wrought.

He knew what the kiss was for. Marco just adored seeing Star’s baby blue eyes light up, her smile twitch with excitement, and she gave the cutest little shrug that said, ‘just cause’.

Just because.

Just because she loved him.

And just as Marco was about to kiss Star back, to reply with all the unspoken sweet nothings, a certain shrieking broke their serene moment. The fire alarm. Marco yelped as he pulled away from his girlfriend, bolting towards the oven.

“One thousand degrees?! Star, what did you do?!” he yelped.

“It said two hundred degrees for five minutes so I thought a thousand degrees for one minute would do the same thing!” Star exclaimed.

As Marco shut off the stove and stomped off in search of a broom to shut off the fire alarm with, he couldn’t help but smile. Those silly, goofy antics were what kept him going.

**Author's Note:**

> comments are always appreciated! c:


End file.
